Michael Sterling sat in his office. He was looking at the tactical board. He moved the magnets around but they did not make sense. Every formation looked like a mistake.

Arthur Milton walked in. He was holding a tablet. He looked nervous.

"Boss," Arthur said. "The morale is low. Diego Nunez is sitting in the canteen staring at a boiled egg. He has been staring at it for twenty minutes. He says the egg looks sad."

"We need a spark Arthur," Michael said rubbing his eyes. "We need something to make them forget the West Ham game. We need to remind them that football is a game. Not a war."

"I have a solution," Arthur said. "But you might hate it."

"What is it?"

"We had a request," Arthur said tapping the screen. "From a streamer. His name is Turbo. He has fifty million followers. He screams a lot. He loves Barnsley because he plays with us on the video game."

Michael frowned.

"A streamer? Arthur we are in a title race. We need focus. We do not need a man running around with a camera screaming."

"We need laughter Boss," Arthur argued. "Turbo is chaos. But he is happy chaos. Let him come. Let him film. If Diego laughs then the curse is broken."

Michael looked out the window. The players were walking onto the pitch. They looked like zombies.

"Okay," Michael sighed. "Bring in the clown. But if he annoys Sergio Ramos I am not responsible for the consequences."

THE ARRIVAL OF TURBO

One hour later a bright neon green car drove through the gates. It was loud. It was fast. It parked diagonally across three parking spaces.

A young man jumped out. He was wearing a Barnsley shirt that was two sizes too small. He held a camera on a stick.

"WHAT IS UP GUYS!" Turbo screamed at the camera. "WE ARE HERE! THE HOME OF THE MISFITS! SIUUUUU!"

He did a spin. He almost fell over.

Michael walked out to meet him.

"Welcome Turbo," Michael said extending a hand.

"MICHAEL STERLING!" Turbo yelled. He did not shake the hand. He hugged Michael. "THE LEGEND! THE MAN! THE MYTH! WHY DID YOU LOSE TO WEST HAM? WHY?"

"We had a bad day," Michael said pulling away. "Please do not scream in my ear."

"SORRY!" Turbo whispered loudly. "I AM EXCITED! WHERE IS THE BULL? I WANT TO SEE THE BULL!"

THE MEETING

They walked to the training pitch.

The players were stretching. They looked miserable.

Then they heard the noise.

"BARNSLEY BOYS!" Turbo shouted running onto the grass.

Diego Nunez looked up. He stopped stretching.

"Who is the loud green man?" Diego asked Sergio Ramos. "Is he a radioactive grasshopper?"

Turbo ran straight to Diego. He stood in front of the giant defender.

Turbo was five feet and eight inches. Diego was six feet and four inches.

Turbo looked up.

"YOU ARE HUGE!" Turbo shouted. "YOU ARE A MOUNTAIN! BARK AT ME!"

Diego blinked.

"Bark?" Diego asked.

"YES! BARK! WOOF WOOF!" Turbo started barking like a dog. He jumped up and down.

Diego looked at Michael. Michael nodded slowly.

Diego smiled. A wide scary smile.

"Okay," Diego said.

Diego took a deep breath.

ROAR.

It was not a bark. It was a sound that came from the bottom of a cave. It shook the ground.

Turbo fell backwards onto the grass.

"OH MY GOD!" Turbo screamed laughing. "HE IS A MONSTER! I LOVE HIM!"

The other players started to smile. Endrick walked over.

"You are the internet guy," Endrick said. "I watch your videos. You are crazy."

"ENDRICK!" Turbo yelled getting up. "THE BRAZILIAN DIAMOND! SHOW ME A SKILL! RIGHT NOW! NUTMEG ME!"

Endrick grinned. He had a ball at his feet.

"Okay," Endrick said.

Turbo opened his legs. "DO IT!"

Endrick flicked the ball. It went through Turbo legs. Turbo tried to catch it but he slipped on the wet grass and fell face first into the mud.

The whole squad erupted in laughter.

Jamie Vardy was laughing so hard he had to hold onto the goalpost. Even Jan Visser the grumpy goalkeeper was chuckling.

"See Boss?" Arthur whispered. "Laughter. It is the best medicine."

THE CHALLENGES

The training session turned into a carnival.

Turbo challenged the players to different games.

First was the Crossbar Challenge.

"If I hit the bar," Turbo announced. "Sergio Ramos has to give me his boots. If I miss I have to let Diego tackle me."

"I like this game," Diego said cracking his knuckles.

Turbo placed the ball on the edge of the box. He took a long run up. He ran like a cartoon character.

He kicked the ball.

It flew high. Very high. It went over the bar. It went over the net. It went over the fence and hit Arthur car in the parking lot.

BONK.

"My car!" Arthur shouted.

"I missed!" Turbo cried.

Diego Nunez stepped forward.

"Time for the tackle," Diego said.

"WAIT!" Turbo screamed. "GENTLE! PLEASE GENTLE!"

Diego ran at him. But at the last second Diego slid past him and just tickled his ribs.

Turbo collapsed laughing and screaming.

"HE TICKLED ME! THE BULL TICKLED ME!"

THE RACE

Next was the Speed Race.

"I am faster than Mbappe," Turbo claimed. "I am electricity."

"Race Endrick," Osimhen suggested. "He has rockets in his shoes."

They lined up on the goal line.

"Three. Two. One. GO!" Jamie Vardy shouted.

Endrick exploded off the line. He was a blur.

Turbo ran. His arms were flailing. He looked like he was fighting invisible bees.

Endrick reached the halfway line. He turned around. He ran backwards.

And he still won.

Turbo crossed the line five seconds later. He was gasping for air.

"He... is... cheating," Turbo wheezed. "He... has... turbo... boost."

Endrick patted him on the back.

"Good try," Endrick said. "You run funny. Like a duck."

THE FINAL TEST

The mood had completely shifted. The grey cloud was gone. The sun was out.

"One last challenge," Michael announced. "Penalty shootout. Turbo versus Jan Visser."

Jan Visser walked to the goal. The giant Dutchman looked imposing.

"If you score," Jan said. "I will dance. If I save it you have to scream 'I LOVE BARNSLEY' to the camera."

"DEAL!" Turbo shouted.

Turbo placed the ball on the spot.

The whole squad gathered around. They were cheering.

"Come on Turbo!" Osimhen shouted. "Smash it!"

"Save it Jan!" Ramos yelled.

Turbo stepped back. He did the Cristiano Ronaldo stance. Legs wide. Deep breath.

"SIUUU!" Turbo whispered.

He ran up.

He hit the ball.

It was not a bad penalty. It was low. It was aimed at the corner.

But Jan Visser was a professional. He dived. He caught the ball with two hands. He did not spill it.

"NOOOOO!" Turbo fell to his knees.

Jan Visser stood up. He walked over to Turbo. He offered him a hand.

"Good effort," Jan said. "But my house is locked."

Turbo grabbed the camera. He put his face right in the lens.

"I LOVE BARNSLEY!" Turbo screamed. "THEY ARE TOO GOOD! JAN VISSER IS A WALL! DIEGO IS A BEAST! ENDRICK IS A ROCKET!"

THE DEPARTURE

The session ended.

Turbo was covered in mud. He was tired. But he was beaming.

"This was amazing," Turbo said to Michael. "You have a good group here Michael. They are like a family."

"They are," Michael smiled. "Thank you Turbo. You woke them up."

Turbo turned to Diego Nunez.

"Can I have a hug Bull?"

Diego opened his massive arms. He hugged the small streamer. Turbo disappeared into the embrace.

"You are warm," Turbo muffled voice said from inside Diego chest. "Like a blanket."

Turbo got back into his neon green car.

"WIN THE LEAGUE!" he shouted out the window. "DO IT FOR THE MISFITS!"

He drove away honking his horn.

THE AFTERMATH

The car park was quiet again.

The players walked back to the dressing room. But the silence was different now. It was a comfortable silence.

Victor Osimhen put his arm around Leo Stone.

"Did you see him fall?" Osimhen laughed. "He fell like a sack of potatoes."

"It was funny," Leo smiled. "I needed that."

Michael stood with Arthur.

"My car has a dent," Arthur said sadly. "A Turbo dent."

"The club will pay for it Arthur," Michael said. "It was a small price for morale."

Michael looked at the team.

The tension was gone. The fear of failure was gone. They remembered why they started playing football in the first place.

Because it was fun.

"Boss," Sergio Ramos said walking past.

"Yes Sergio?"

"We are ready now," Ramos said. "The sadness is gone. Now we focus."

"Good," Michael said.

He walked back to his office.

He looked at the tactical board again.

This time the magnets made sense.

City were ahead. Liverpool were close. But Barnsley had something the others did not have.

They had joy.

And a team that laughs together wins together.

Michael sat down. He opened his laptop.

NEXT MATCH: MANCHESTER UNITED (HOME)

"Okay," Michael whispered. "Let us bring the noise."

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.